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Wednesday, May 25, 2011

I officially removed 'Taos Art Quilt' from my project board this morning... it has been mounted and framed:

It's a little cock-eyed... I had to take the photo at an angle, because the frame has glass that isn't glare-resistant. I was lucky I was able to find a ready-made frame that wasn't a small fortune! Custom framing was out of the question... this is my exhibit piece for this year's Prelude Exhibit, the show for participants of the annual Flagstaff Open Studios tour, so I needed to keep my costs in line. And even if I wanted to swap the glass with glare-proof, the glass is imbedded in the mat, so I would have to replace the matting as well... there goes the cost! At any rate, I'm very pleased with the end result, and if it doesn't sell, I already have a spot picked out to hang it in our house! I am glad to be finished with this piece... it sat on my work table for far too long! Now I can decide what I want to do next: indigo dyeing, more "how-to" videos, deconstructed screen printing, tray dyeing, batik... the list goes on and on!

Monday, May 23, 2011

I can't believe I haven't posted about this project since last December! But then it languished in my studio for quite some time, while I worked on several other projects. However, I am hoping to have this complete in time to submit to this year's Prelude Exhibit at Coconino Center for the Arts... take-in day is August 2nd, and I need to decide if I want to mat and frame this piece, or complete it as an Art Quilt. Here is a picture of how it looks now:

I really like the idea of leaving it as a flat piece, rather than adding batting and a backing and stitching... that would make it more 3-dimensional, but I am concerned that it would detract from the design. On the other hand, I am not well-versed in the technique of blocking, and having it matted and framed would add to the cost. If I sell it at Prelude, they take a 30% commision, so I would have to up the price to make it worthwhile. Guess I'll have to give myself a deadline for deciding, because take-in will be here before you know it!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Anyone who knows me (even slightly) probably knows I'm crazy for color! Been that way as far back as I can remember! And the brighter the better... pastels just don't do it for me! So it should be no surprise that the experiment I did in the picture below made my pulse quicken the minute I checked on it:

I'm experimenting on cotton muslin to test some fold and dye methods, but was also trying to simulate some colors I have seen on "mudmee" tie-dyed garments, which have unusual shades of color. My theory is that the "mudmee" colors are a result of overdyeing garments that started out black, then were discharged with a bleaching agent then overdyed. But I have also seen some "mudmee" items that don't seem to have any black in them at all. Today, I was experimenting with using a syringe to create lines in a circular fan-fold, and also decided to fan-fold a section, dye one side with a couple of colors, and dye the other side with other colors. I am using a combination of Dharma Trading's Hot Pink, Lemon Yellow, and a Teal Green that I created with Turquoise and lemon yellow. At any rate, after I had 'batched' the circular fold with just black dye, and had applied some dyes to the regular fan fold, I cut open the circular shape and just drizzled some of each color in a circular pattern and let the piece 'batch' on a rack for awhile, then opened it up.... woof! I have only come close to the effect I got on the circular area using sharpie pens and alcohol before. Now I know I can get similar results with dyes, and I'm excited about trying this on clothing pieces!

I do love experimenting on fabric scraps, but the true test is how it works on shirts, so tomorrow will be my 'Dress Rehearsal'... stay tuned!

Friday, May 13, 2011

Seeing these guys, snoozing on the bed, never fails to put a grin on my face! Clockwise, from upper left is Double, our oldest who came with the property; next is Bubba, our shelter cat, and in front is Shrekkie, the abandoned kitty we took in last summer. At first, Double and Bubba weren't too thrilled to have a third member of the gang, but all three have learned to cohabit together pretty peacefully... gotta love 'em!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Every once in awhile, I splurge and get something... usually something I have wanted for awhile... that isn't a necessity, such as this:

I have wanted a fountain for some time now... partly because I love the sound of the water, but also because I wanted a source of running water for the many birds that visit our property. I have some feeding stations around the house, with water dishes, but this is special, and I hope we will all enjoy it!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

End of day one of recovery from his surgery... my poor little guy! The vets didn't want him to eat anything yesterday due to the anesthesia, but he hadn't eaten anything since 8pm Monday. I finally broke down and gave him a little food late last night, then heard him yowling early this morning and gave him some more. I have meds to give him twice a day for a few days, so I crushed one of the pills in a little food this morning and he wolfed it down without blinking, then I gave him a larger portion... gone in no time! So he has been sleeping and eating most of today... still not allowed outside yet, but we'll see how it goes. I just want to be sure he doesn't do anything to rupture the stitches! All in all, he has been a real champ about this! More to come...

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

For those of you who were following my blog last summer, you might recall that I decided to take in a stray cat... something I don't normally do. But he was skin and bones, and I just couldn't see him wasting away, so against my better judgement I began to put out dry food and water on the deck. Eventually, I was able to start coaxing him inside with some wet food, and was successful in being able to shelter him inside through the winter. One thing I have had in mind was to get him in to the vets to have him altered, and today was the day!

I got this shot of him this morning, before the trip to the vet's. I think he knew something was going on, when he discovered I hadn't put any food out for him. I tried to put him in a small pet carrier, but he was too tall, so I had to drag out the giant sized one. He was not a happy camper in that carrier! Didn't speak to me all the way to and from the vet's office! But he got through the surgery alright. Now I need to keep him inside for 2-3 days (yeah, right!), no food until tomorrow... poor little guy, he's not that big! Missing a whole day of meals could take off some weight he can't afford to lose! But I guess that is so he won't get sick, following the anesthesia. Anyway, he's back talking to me again, and right now he's looking for a way to get outside. My other two boys have been banished to the patio room for awhile to give Shrekkie a chance to recuperate. One thing I refused was the collar they usually put on animals to keep them from licking the surgery... there is no way this little guy would tolerate that! Oh, yeah, and I get to feed him medicine twice a day for 5 days... sigh! Guess we'll get through this somehow!

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This is a journal of my creative efforts, with a little personal philosophy thrown in to add spice to the mix. Visit my website at www.tiedyejudy.com, my Facebook page Judy Sall Originals, and my twitter feed @judy_sall.